Telephone suggestions for three weeks in Australia and New Z

Question

I will be traveling from U.S. to Sidney in Nov.  I was hoping to find out the most efficient quickly getting a phone to use once arriving into the Sidney airport.

I will need the phone only for three weeks and would like it to be usable in New Zealand as well.  I will spend several days in Sidney before leaving on an 11 day cruise to New Zealand.  Once returning I will fly to Cairns and then drive to Port Douglas.

I would like for the phone to have service in all these places if possible.

I can activate my international plan with my current phone but it will be more than $300 US for three weeks.  I was hoping for something much less but that would allow me to use gps maps to find my way around, have internet to look up things, send emails  and make some calls locally if needed.  I don’t anticipate having to make any calls back to the US while I am gone.

I would love to be able to find something close to the Sidney international airport or at the airport that is reasonable if possible. If I could order online that would be great too.

inas66 · Accepted Answer

When you arrive in Sydney airport, there are lots of stores selling SIM cards. Often with airport specials.

If your phone is unlocked, you can buy a SIM card. Expect to pay $20-$30 Australian for plenty of data and calls for the couple of weeks you are here.

You'll have to do the same thing in New Zealand. Grab a traveller SIM at the airport. You won't get a good deal roaming between the two countries.

Yarramar · Answer

What phone do you have?( Brand & model number)

OZRCFLYER · Answer

Hi, SIdney is usually a Christian name. Sydney is the capitol of New South Wales. Vodafail have deal for Oz and NZ but they have terrible coverage. Cheers,

Naomi B · Answer

Telstra has the best overall cover in Australia.

clbmas · Answer

I have an iPhone SE but it’s a second generation. I looked at Skinny NZ but I would have to have an unlocked phone and to purchase one unlocked is around $200 to 300 US. I can unlock mine due to not being owning it yet, and 2nd generation which isn’t compatible with Skinny. All their way homes you have to purchase for a three month period.

clbmas · Answer

Sorry, about the spelling of Sydney yes duh! That kind you for the information!

clbmas · Answer

Thank you for the info on the two phone companies! I’m going to check them out!

HunterRes42 · Answer

Pretty sure iPhone SE2 has an eSIM so that would be easiest as you can set them up from home. Australia and NZ are 2 seperate countries so you need a seperate SIM card for each. Not sure Vodaphone prepaid has free roaming in NZ so you’d need to check that. Maybe just use WiFi in Sydney and get a NZ SIM for your cruise. You’re not going to get much if any reception on the ship of course. Telstra do have a 7 day prepaid plan for $10 while in Sydney. There are various resellers of SIM cards from the major networks that are available all over the place (supermarkets, department stores, convenience stores etc).

Naomi B · Answer

Our Telstra plan costs $30 per month and gives free international calls and loads of data (we never use all of either of those).

HunterRes42 · Answer

Many plans do Bella but that’s for international calls from Australia, OP wants to make calls from NZ as well.

Telephone suggestions for three weeks in Australia and New Z - Australia Forum

Telephone suggestions for three weeks in Australia and New Z

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